Friday, April 2, 2010
Implement RTE, promote failed students, schools told
Source:indiaedunews:April 02, 2010
New Delhi: As the Right To Education (RTE) Act became a fundamental right of every child from yesterday, all the schools received a circular from the Directorate of Education (DoE), Delhi government, stating them to promote all those students who failed in classes VI, VII and VIII, officials said.
They further added that the circular was required to inform the schools of the provision since most of them in Delhi declared their results before the RTE was implemented.
V.P. Singh, state project director of the Delhi government said that, "The RTE makes it necessary for every child to be educated at least till his middle class."
In the circular, the principals have also been asked to prepare a road map for three years along with the list of more teachers required for its implementation.
According to the provision of the Act, the teacher-student ratio in a school should be not more than 1:30. There is thus an acute shortage of teachers to fulfill the criteria at present.
According to the sources, the Delhi government schools have approximately 800 TGT, 1109 PGT and 175 principal's posts lying vacant.
"It has been intimated to the principals that a student should be promoted if he fails on margins. If at all he needs to work hard in some subject, he should be given another chance and should be placed in the category of compartment," said the sources.
The city government has submitted a proposal to the Union Human Resource Development (HRD) Ministry as far as the question of developing the infrastructure goes. The decision to sanction the funds is likely to be taken in July, the sources said.
From today, every child has a right to education
Apr 01 2010 , New Delhi
Nearly eight years after
the Constitution was amended
to make education a fundamental right,
the government today implemented a
historic law to provide free and compulsory
education to all children in age group of 6-14 years.
The 86th Constitutional amendment making education a fundamental right was passed by Parliament in 2002. The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, a law to enable the implementation of the fundamental right, was passed by Parliament last year. Both the Constitutional amendment and the new law came into force from today.
The new law makes it obligatory on part of the state governments and local bodies to ensure that every child gets education in a school in the neighbourhood.
Its implementation will directly benefit close to one crore children who do not go to schools at present. These children, who have either dropped out from schools or have never been to any educational institution, will be enrolled in schools.
The Right To Education is being touted by the UPA government as another major achievement after Right To Information Act and National Rural Employment Guarantee Act.
At present, there are nearly 22 crore children in the relevant age group. However, 4.6 per cent of these children (nearly 92 lakh) are out of school, a ministry official said.
The school management committee or the local authority will identify the drop-outs or out of school children above six years of age and admit them in classes appropriate to their age after giving special training.
The Act makes it a right of every child to get education. The Act makes it obligatory for the appropriate governments to ensure that every child gets free elementary education.
The Act mandates that even private educational institutions have to reserve 25 per cent seats for children from weaker sections.
Certain schools have already challenged the law in the Supreme Court as being "unconstitutional" and violating fundamental rights of unaided private educational institutions. However, HRD Minister Kapil Sibal has said that legal process would not affect the implementation of law.
The Finance Commission has provided Rs 25,000 crore to the states for implementation of the Act.
As per the government's estimate, there will be a requirement of Rs 1.71 lakh crore in the next five years for implementation of the Act. Sibal said that the government has arranged the required funds for implementing the law.
The Act says no school can deny admission to a student and all schools need to have trained teachers. In case of schools not having trained teachers, they will have to comply with the provision within three years.
As per the new law, the schools need to have certain minimum facilities like adequate teachers, playground and infrastructure. The government will evolve some mechanism to help marginalised schools comply with the provisions of the Act.
The government has already prepared model rules which have been circulated to the states for preparing their own rules for implementation of the Act. The Centre has also prepared separate rules for the Union Territories which will be notified by the Law Ministry next week.
As per the Model rules, the local bodies and the state governments will undertake household surveys and neighbourhood school mapping to ensure that all children are sent to school.
The rules say that the state governments or local authorities will determine the neighbourhood schools by undertaking school mapping. Such agencies shall ensure that no child is subjected to caste, class, religious or gender abuse in the school.
The local authority will conduct a household survey and maintain a record of all children in its jurisdiction. The record will contain detailed information about the child and the parents and will specify whether the child belongs to the weaker section or disadvantaged group or having any disability.
The state government or local authorities will identify children with disabilities and children from disadvantaged groups every year.
Unaided and private schools shall ensure that children from weaker sections and disadvantaged groups shall not be segregated from the other children in the classrooms nor shall their classes be held at places and timings different from the classes held for the other children.
The new law will ensure that quality education is provided to children of all community, including minorities and backward classes.
However, the reservation for weaker section will not be implemented from this year as the admission season is almost over. It will be implemented from 2011-12.
The state government and local authorities will establish primary schools within walking distance of one km of the neighbourhood. In case of children for Class VI to VIII, the school should be within a walking distance of three km of the neighbourhood.
The government has prepared a short film on the new law which would be aired on TV channels to create awareness.
The 86th Constitutional amendment making education a fundamental right was passed by Parliament in 2002. The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, a law to enable the implementation of the fundamental right, was passed by Parliament last year. Both the Constitutional amendment and the new law came into force from today.
The new law makes it obligatory on part of the state governments and local bodies to ensure that every child gets education in a school in the neighbourhood.
Its implementation will directly benefit close to one crore children who do not go to schools at present. These children, who have either dropped out from schools or have never been to any educational institution, will be enrolled in schools.
The Right To Education is being touted by the UPA government as another major achievement after Right To Information Act and National Rural Employment Guarantee Act.
At present, there are nearly 22 crore children in the relevant age group. However, 4.6 per cent of these children (nearly 92 lakh) are out of school, a ministry official said.
The school management committee or the local authority will identify the drop-outs or out of school children above six years of age and admit them in classes appropriate to their age after giving special training.
The Act makes it a right of every child to get education. The Act makes it obligatory for the appropriate governments to ensure that every child gets free elementary education.
The Act mandates that even private educational institutions have to reserve 25 per cent seats for children from weaker sections.
Certain schools have already challenged the law in the Supreme Court as being "unconstitutional" and violating fundamental rights of unaided private educational institutions. However, HRD Minister Kapil Sibal has said that legal process would not affect the implementation of law.
The Finance Commission has provided Rs 25,000 crore to the states for implementation of the Act.
As per the government's estimate, there will be a requirement of Rs 1.71 lakh crore in the next five years for implementation of the Act. Sibal said that the government has arranged the required funds for implementing the law.
The Act says no school can deny admission to a student and all schools need to have trained teachers. In case of schools not having trained teachers, they will have to comply with the provision within three years.
As per the new law, the schools need to have certain minimum facilities like adequate teachers, playground and infrastructure. The government will evolve some mechanism to help marginalised schools comply with the provisions of the Act.
The government has already prepared model rules which have been circulated to the states for preparing their own rules for implementation of the Act. The Centre has also prepared separate rules for the Union Territories which will be notified by the Law Ministry next week.
As per the Model rules, the local bodies and the state governments will undertake household surveys and neighbourhood school mapping to ensure that all children are sent to school.
The rules say that the state governments or local authorities will determine the neighbourhood schools by undertaking school mapping. Such agencies shall ensure that no child is subjected to caste, class, religious or gender abuse in the school.
The local authority will conduct a household survey and maintain a record of all children in its jurisdiction. The record will contain detailed information about the child and the parents and will specify whether the child belongs to the weaker section or disadvantaged group or having any disability.
The state government or local authorities will identify children with disabilities and children from disadvantaged groups every year.
Unaided and private schools shall ensure that children from weaker sections and disadvantaged groups shall not be segregated from the other children in the classrooms nor shall their classes be held at places and timings different from the classes held for the other children.
The new law will ensure that quality education is provided to children of all community, including minorities and backward classes.
However, the reservation for weaker section will not be implemented from this year as the admission season is almost over. It will be implemented from 2011-12.
The state government and local authorities will establish primary schools within walking distance of one km of the neighbourhood. In case of children for Class VI to VIII, the school should be within a walking distance of three km of the neighbourhood.
The government has prepared a short film on the new law which would be aired on TV channels to create awareness.
Child rights panel to monitor RTE Act
Source:indiaedunews:April 01, 2010
New Delhi: The apex child rights panel on Thursday welcomed the implementation of the much-awaited Right to Education (RTE) Act and said that it looks forward to taking on the responsibility of monitoring its successful implementation.
The Act will provide free and compulsory education to children in the age group of 6-14 and specially focus on bringing 8.1 million children of this age group back to the classroom.
A special division of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) will monitor the implementation of the Act.
"NCPCR welcomes the formal notification of this act and looks forward to playing an active role in ensuring its successful implementation. A special division within NCPCR will undertake this huge and important task in the coming months and years," an official statement said.
"A special toll-free helpline to register complaints will be set up by NCPCR for this purpose," it added.
Calling on civil society and others to play an active role in the implementation of the act, the statement further said, "We invite all civil society groups, students, teachers, administrators, artists, writers, government personnel, legislators, members of the judiciary and all other stakeholders to join hands and work together to build a movement to ensure that every child of this country is in school and is able to get at least eight years of quality education."
PM enters RTE frame, to address nation on Apr 1
Source:Akshaya Mukul, TNN, Mar 31, 2010, 02.02am IST
NEW DELHI: In an unprecedented move, PM Manmohan Singh will address the nation on the historic Right to Education Act on April 1, the day the law comes into effect.
It is for the first time in independent India that any PM will address the nation on a specific law.
Though it it is also for the first time that a new fundamental right -- Right to Education -- will come into play, the PM's address takes on significance because it comes against the backdrop of a strong perception that he was more focussed on foreign policy issues and rate of growth.
The PM's preoccupation with big ticket foreign policy issues -- civil nuclear energy cooperation with the US and quest for improvement of ties with neighbours -- has seen Congress chief Sonia Gandhi getting the exclusive political property rights over major social sector initiatives -- from the NREGA to food security bill to women's quota bill.
The confrontation with the opponents with the women's quota bill starkly brought out the disconnect between priorities with Sonia Gandhi staking her political capital to see the Bill through in the Rajya Sabha.
Importantly, the Prime Minister's decision to speak to a country-wide audience on RTE comes a day after the setting up of the National Advisory Council under Sonia Gandhi.
Right to education as a fundamental right was brought about through the 86th Amendment in 2002 by inserting Article 21A in the Constitution.
It is believed that the HRD minister Kapil Sibal had met the PM and requested him to address the nation on the historic law.
Meanwhile, HRD ministry has put in place all the necessary legal requirements needed under the RTE Act. The model rules have been sent to the state governments while central rules for Union Territories without assemblies -- Chandigarh, Andaman & Nicobar Island, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Lakshwadeep, and Daman & Diu -- will get finalised on Wednesday after being vetted by the law ministry. Many state governments have also begun the process of adapting/adopting model rules as state rules.
The HRD ministry has also notified NCERT as the academic authority for the curriculum and the National Council for Teacher Education as the academic authority that will lay down the minimum qualification for teachers. National Commission for Protection of Child Rights will soon set up a monitoring cell for the RTE Act. Each state has also been asked to set up a State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (SCPCR). Till this is done the states have been asked to set up Right to Education Protection Authority. Karnataka, Sikkim, Delhi and Maharashtra have already set up their SCPCR.
HRD ministry has also zeroed on a host of issues as the next steps for better implementation of RTE. Among them is sharing of funds between the Centre and states. The ministry wants revision in the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan's funding pattern of 55:45 between the Centre and states so that it can be aligned with RTE. HRD wants the Centre's share for RTE to go up.
HRD has also decided to ensure that age appropriate admissions are given by schools as well as mapping of neighbourhood schools is done. Reservation of 25% to underprivileged children in the neighbourhood might not be possible this year as school admission in many states had nearly got over by the time notification of RTE and Article 21A was made.
Money no constraint for RTE: PM
Source:TNN, Apr 2, 2010, 04.03am IST
NEW DELHI: A deep personal touch from PM Manmohan Singh and a promise that financial constraint will not hamper its implementation is all that the Right to Education Act needed on the first day.
HRD minister Kapil Sibal, who has been at the forefront of showcasing the RTE Act, took the backseat on Thursday. He even cancelled his pre-scheduled press conference.
Addressing the nation, the first ever by any PM on a law, Singh gave his own example to convey how education could ensure that no child stops dreaming. "I was born to a family of modest means. In my childhood I had to walk a long distance to go to school. I read under the dim light of a kerosene lamp. I am what I am today because of education," the PM said.
Singh, however, did not miss out on scoring the political point by stating that the first demand for Right to Education during the British rule was made by Gopal Krishna Gokhale, a Congressman.
The assertion is seen as necessary, considering that the the 86th constitutional amendment that made right to education a fundamental right was done during the NDA regime in 2002.
The PM's speech made a reference to the Constitution amendment that has also become operational but fell short of thanking BJP's efforts.
"This demonstrates our national commitment to the education of our children and to the future of India. We are a nation of young people. The health, education and creative abilities of our children and young people will determine the well-being and strength of our nation. Education is the key to progress. It empowers the individual. It enables a nation," he said.
The PM's speech tried to reach out to everyone. He said RTE should become a "national endeavour" for state governments, district and village administration, teachers, parents and civil society groups.
United Nations congratulates India for RTE initiative
Source:Indiaedunews:April 02, 2010
United Nations congratulates India for RTE initiative
New Delhi: The echo of implementing the historic Right of Children to
Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act was heard loud and clear throughout the country.
The Act, giving wings to the aspirations of children aged 6-14 to free and compulsory education was lauded by the United Nations bodies with the UNICEF representative Mr. Hulshof in India saying that, "This initiative will ensure quality education with equity to tens of millions of children in India. It will propel India's potential to even greater heights of productivity and prosperity."
UNESCO New Delhi Director Armoogum Parsuramen said that, "This Act bridges the dream of India to be a step closer to its goal of achieving national educational development, millennium development as well as education for all by improving each child’s accessibility to secondary and higher education."
"It is the mission of UNESCO to spread education to every nook and corner of the country and with this mission in mind, the RTE Act stands as the best accompany to its successful implementation."
Andre Bogui, Acting Director for International Labour Organization Sub-Regional Office for South Asia said that, "The RTE brings forth the opportunity to reach the disadvantaged sections of the society such as child labourers. Although there is no such certified age for employment but the Act specifies the age limit for children to be at school during that period of their life, which means they are not supposed to work."
Save the Children, a NGO, which works for the rights of children in the country, described it as the landmark moment in India’s history.
As India is also one of the signatories to the UN Child Rights Convention (UNCRC), its commitment to the Article 28 of the UNCRC had made it mandatory for the country to implement such a directive.
Thomas Chandy, CEO of Save the Children in a statement said that, "Although the Act has been implemented all over the country, but there are some loopholes which need to be addressed. The critical challenges ahead might even claim the fundamental right to be a hollow one."
He further added that, "The act, for example, excludes children in the age group 3-6 years which are the most crucial years for a child for his mental, emotional and cognitive development. These formative years cannot be excluded to achieve the universal elementary education targets. When we talk of elementary education, how can we not focus on investing on these early years?"
The present teacher-student ratio stands at 1:50 and in some institutions, it is as high as 1:80, which is enormous as compared to the prescribed limit of 1:30 in the Act. If the directives of the Act are to be followed, then there would be a need of at least 12 lakh more teachers within six months of the notification of the Act.
"The scenario is more critical when there are more than five lakh-untrained teachers in the country, while the Act stipulates that the teachers must be qualified and trained," he said.
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